Zetsubou with No Goal
by kazikamikaze24
Summary: Nozomu Itoshiki, the youngest son of the Itoshiki family, and youngest apprentice of Professor Oak, was told he is done with his apprenticeship. Will he pursue his dream of becoming a teacher, return home with nothing left to do, or will he find option C?
1. Chapter 1

"I can't believe you're having me do this professor..." The young man stated in a defeated tone. His black hair dangled in front of his glasses, making it hard for him to see the professor at times.

"And I still can't believe you're still wearing the kimono and hakama. The only ones who follow that tradition are the priestesses in Lavender Town. It looks weird on you when you wear it with your white trench coat." The professor chuckled, causing the young man to glare at him.

"My family happens to LIVE in Lavender Town, you know that Professor Oak! Oh, and this trench coat was a gift from you, thank you!"

"Yes, yes..." Professor Oak was a happy man who knew many things about the world. He won many awards for his scientific discoveries, improvements on existing technology, and for all of his knowledge on Pokemon, creatures with a plethora of different abilities, shapes, and mind sets unlike humans. "But I have no reason to keep you here any longer Nozomu. You've completed your training, and have the necessary license to start your own lab in Lavender."

"B-but!" Nozomu looked away from the professor. Professor Oak was the one who found him years ago on accident when he was trying to catch a mysterious Pokemon that wasn't listed in his _Big Book of Pokemon_. It was a small, yellow bulb creature with three green leaves on top of its head, and had the brightest red eyes he had ever seen.

Nozomu, determined to claim the Pokemon as his own, ran after it down Route 12. He managed to corner it on one of the docks; however, a Seadra used Hydro Pump to knock him and the unknown Pokemon into the water. At the time, he didn't know why he heard a voice screaming to be saved, but Nozomu, instead of swimming up to shore, swam further into the water to get the Pokemon. Despite him catching up to the little Pokemon, he didn't have enough air to swim up to the surface, and nearly drowned, if it wasn't for the professor using his Blastoise to rescue them.

From that point on, Nozomu and the little Pokemon, which turned out to be a Petilil, a Pokemon from the Unova region, couldn't be separated from one another. Nozomu's parents asked the professor to take the boy as an apprentice, an action he didn't expect to happen at the time, but the professor was happy to teach another person. His goodbye wasn't one filled with tears, but he was saddened to leave his sister behind.

"If you want Nozomu, I can register you as a Pokemon trainer, and let you go on your merry way. At the very least, you could follow your childhood dream and become a teacher." Nozomu looked away from the professor, noticing that someone was running up to the lab. The person was a boy wearing a blue jacket with a red and white cap on his head, and a pair of blue jeans.

"PROFESSOR OAK!" The front door was forced open, making the old man drop a few Pokeballs in surprise, as well as cause Nozomu to chuckle at the sight.

_'Of course it would be Ash.'_ Ash Ketchum, a resident of Pallet Town, is a frequent visitor of the lab. He wanted to be the professor's apprentice as well, but wanted to become a trainer just like his father, who apparently died while becoming a Pokemon Master. After the professor told him this years ago, Nozomu couldn't help but to like Ash and how he was so willing to go through despair to become like his father.

"PROFESSOR!" Ash, despite running as fast as a Pikachu, stopped in front of him and waved. "Oh, hi Nozomu! Am I late to claim my Pokemon?" He was forced to nod.

"Several hours late to be exact. What happened?" Ash gave him a wide smile and began to chuckle.

"Well, I forgot to replace my broken alarm clock last night, and-"

"Che, no wonder you couldn't be the professor's apprentice. If you forgot to replace your own alarm clock."

"HEY!" Ash stomped on the ground. "I SO could be Professor Oak's apprentice if I wanted to, but-"

"ENOUGH YOU TWO!" Professor Oak shouted, making Nozomu look away from Ash. "Now Ash. We don't have any of the three basic starters that you wanted, but I did manage to get you something special that isn't seen around here." Nozomu couldn't help but to roll his eyes at Ash jumping about. Professor Oak grabbed a Pokeball with a small, yellow thunder bolt above the release button and handed it to the boy. Knowing full well the chaos Ash tends to attract when he gets excited, Nozomu grabbed his suitcase and left the lab.

* * *

><p>Pallet Town was a small, peaceful town where everyone knew each other. There were only two ways to leave the town, Route 1, which led to Viridian, and Route 21, the port that leads to Cinnabar Island. Unlike bigger cities, someone could live in Pallet Town with a middle wage job and still have some money left to spoil themselves. In a way, Nozomu didn't want to leave this quiet little town. If the professor needed him to leave with him anywhere, he would do it in a heartbeat, but it didn't feel right for him to leave the town after being in it for ten years.<p>

"I'm twenty two years old, and the only damn Pokemon I have is my Petilil. I'm in despair at the thought of leaving such a wonderful town!" Nozomu extended his arms forward, reaching for the skies as if something would fall on top of him. At least then, if the random object killed him, he wouldn't have to go back home.

"Oh Nozomu, you're so funny!" Shocked, Nozomu turned to see a woman with long, brown hair tied behind her head. She wore a pink shirt with a dark blue skirt, and was holding a bag of fruits.

"It's you Delia." Delia Ketchum was Ash's mother, and had her own bakery in Pallet Town. She, at least from his perspective, treated everyone equally, and loved Pokemon as much as her son.

"Why who else it would be?" Delia placed her bag on the ground and hugged him as tightly as possible, making him gasp in shock. "I'm going to miss you Nozomu. Please come home safe and sound..." Nozomu sighed and returned the thoughtful hug. Luckily for him, she couldn't see the smile she made him have.

"So how did you know I was going to be here?" He asked as he pulled away form her. Delia smiled and pointed towards the lab.

"Professor Oak told me earlier today that you were going to leave tonight, but I wanted to see you before you left. Oh!" Delia picked up her bag and pulled out a Pokeball, though seeing her holding it was a shock for him, and pushed it into his stomach. "I know that you only have Matoi, so I pitched some of my cash aside to get you a Pokemon I thought you'd like." Not knowing what to say, Nozomu grabbed the Pokeball and looked at it. When he heard her bag crunch, he looked up to see her walking back towards town.

"Delia..." Nozomu looked away from her eyes, knowing full well what would happen if he did.

"Come and visit sometime! Pallet Town won't be the same without you Nozomu Itoshiki!" Nozomu couldn't prevent himself from smiling at her kind words, and turned around, facing the exit of Pallet Town, and ran as fast as he could though Route 1.

_'Home huh?'_ Nozomu thought as he tightened his grip on the new Pokeball. Route 1 was the shortest path in existence, thanks to the small hills that once gave trainers trouble were now small mounds. _'Yea,'_ Memories of his time spent with the professor, Delia with her son, and everything else he ever did as an apprentice flew inside his mind, _'I can see Pallet Town as my home.'_

* * *

><p>It didn't take him long to reach Viridian City. It was much busier than it normally was, which meant that he would have to wait until tomorrow to leave the town. Unlike Pallet Town, Viridian City had a gym, a building that was under the control of a Pokemon Gym Leader. If a challenger defeated the Gym Leader, they would obtain the badge of the gym, in this case, the Earth Badge, and possibly some advice on the next gym they wish to go after.<p>

_'If there was one thing that I've learned with Professor Oak, its to never leave Viridian at night. Its when not only the Officer Jennies will try to attack you, but its when Team Rocket tries to steal your Pokemon.'_ Team Rocket, a dangerous group who strive in Kanto with their sights upon rare Pokemon and the treasures of the world. No one knows who leads Team Rocket, and Nozomu was glad that he and the Professor rarely came across them whenever they went traveling, but there are rumors about who does lead them.

He noticed the Pokecenter was up ahead and hurried into the building. The Pokecenter, just like every other one he ever visited, was clean, busy, and had multiple Nurse Joys and Chanseys caring for their patients. Despite how busy they seemed, he noticed that one Nurse Joy was talking to a middle aged man.

"I'm telling you miss. There is a legendary Pokemon in the Viridian Woods! It had the most frightening eyes you'd ever see! Its arms were scythes that took off my arm, my ARM!" Nozomu looked away from the scene, hoping to see if there was a Nurse Joy that could give him a room for the night. "You, in the weird clothes! I know you can hear me! Stay away from the Viridian Forest! Its Bug Pokemon will kill you, and that legendary will always find you!" Nozomu could FEEL the despair coming off the man, and left the Pokecenter because of it.

_'Since the Pokecenter is full, I guess I'll stay at the motel near Route 22 and hope for the best.'_ Route 22, the main path to take if someone was going to the Indigo Plateau, had two small sentry huts that were owned by the Elite Four. These huts were nothing more than additional security to prevent any of the lowlife that lived in Viridian to make their way to the plateau, which made the surrounding neighborhood around that route a neutral zone against crime.

Along the way to the motel, he noticed a teenager who was leaning against a wall next to an alley. He wore a black jacket with matching pants, had gray eyes, and had spiked hair like he did, except the hair was more focused on the right side of his head. What really made him notice the teen was the book he was reading.

"Excuse me young man?" The teen looked up at him.

"Yes?"

"That wouldn't happen to be _No Longer Human_, by Dazai Osamu, would it?" The teen nodded and closed the book.

"I take it you're a fan of the book?"

"Why yea I am. Its quite-" Before Nozomu could finish his sentence, the teen threw the book on the ground and proceeded to stomp on it. "What the hell are you doing?" Instead of answering, the teen stepped off the book, opened it, and pulled out a small pistol from it.

"Step into the alley Nozomu Itoshiki. I've been waiting for you under orders from the boss, and I don't want to make the man wait for someone as low as yourself." Nozomu frowned and ducked, lifting his suitcase to hit the teen's arm. The sudden hit made the teen drop his gun, but he grabbed Nozomu's head and kicked his chest, causing the man to groan. This time, Nozomu slammed the suitcase into the teen's gut, pulled away from the teen, and kicked the gun into the alley.

"Who are you?" Nozomu held Matoi and the second Pokeball he got from Delia, knowing that he should of simply ran as fast as he could towards one of the huts. The teen coughed as he stood up, unzipping his jacket, which showed a large, red R on his black shirt.

"My name's Jun Kudo, and I'm a Team Rocket Grunt with the task of taking you to the boss. Now take him down with Stun Spore Gloom!" Knowing full well what Stun Spore does to anyone caught in its area of infection, Nozomu ran several steps back and released both of his Pokemon. Matoi appeared on top of his head, a trait that the female Pokemon has done ever since they met, while the new Pokemon appeared in front of him. Despite seeing the Pokemon, he could barely see it, as if something was overshadowing the creature from sight. It had bright orange fur with black, fang like stripes coiling around its back, and legs. It had a furry tail that looked similar to a tear drop, but what caught his attention was the rather large bald spot that was slightly hidden by four curved spikes of fur.

_'This isn't normal for a Growlithe.'_ "Ember Growlithe! Matoi, I'm going to need for you to stay on top of me and use Energy Ball." The Growlithe barked, making Jun look around for the source of the noise, and released several small fireballs at the Gloom. Luckily for Jun, the Gloom noticed the fireballs and jumped away, though it couldn't avoid the Energy Ball that forced it to roughly land on the ground.

_'Why aren't you talking to me psychically Nozomu-kun?'_ Matoi asked in her natural language. Nozomu, ever since he witnessed the massacre of Pokemon and humans alike thanks to a knock off team group called Team Despair when he was thirteen, gained the understanding of Poke-speak. It took him months to get over the pleas the victims of Team Despair made, and even longer for him to realize that he already had the ability. Before the massacre, the only Pokemon he could understand was Matoi, since it was her who told him her name.

_'Because we have a new member to the team.'_ Nozomu noticed Jun released a Ekans that was coming towards him quicker than he expected. The oversize poisonous purple snake hissed as it tried to bite him, only to get whacked aside by his suitcase. Matoi let loose a swarm of Magical Leaves, an attack that would follow the Ekans until each leaf met its mark, allowing him to focus on the Growlithe and the Gloom.

_'Why won't anyone notice me?'_ Nozomu heard the Growlithe scream as it spat out a large fireball at the Gloom. The Gloom dodged the fireball and replied with a Tackle, though all this did was make the bald spot on the Growlithe's head visible.

"Huh? How did that Growlithe appear out of thin air?" Jun asked, though this question was more rhetorical than an actual question. Nozomu heard a loud hiss and turned to see the Ekans laying on the ground with chunks of its body scattered around it. "EKANS! Damn you Mr. Despair!"

"What...What did you just call me?" Instead of replying, Jun recalled his Gloom and dropped his second Pokeball, most likely the one used for the Ekans, and ran down the alley. "I am not Mr. Despair! Do you hear me! I am in in despair from being called Mr. Despair! **Zetsuboushita!**" As Nozomu tried to calm down, he noticed that the Growlithe rolled the Pokeball over to him. Matoi slowly slid off of his head, grabbed onto his shoulder, and landed on top of the Growlithe.

_'Ow! Don't do that!'_ The Growlithe growled as Matoi poked the release button, recalling the injured Ekans back to its ball.

_'Nozomu-kun...'_ Matoi called out, making him look down at her. Unlike when they first met, she was now tall enough to reach up to his knee, and the leaves on top of her head could brush up against his hand if she was right under it. He bent down and picked the Pokeball up. With a sigh, he thanked the Growlithe before recalling it, picked up Matoi, and hurried back to the Pokecenter.

* * *

><p>"It was nice to see you again after such a long time Mr. Itoshiki. We'll be sure to keep an eye out for this Jun Kudo character, or any other Team Rocket members in Viridian. Good night." The Officer left the room Nozomu was in. As soon as she left, he sighed and fell onto his bed, chuckling as he saw Matoi watching the Goldeen in the fish tank happily swim in its home.<p>

By the time he reached the Pokecenter, the sky above Viridian were covered in stars, yet there were still many traveling trainers seeking a room in the Pokecenter. Nozomu pushed past the trainers that were waiting in line and ordered for a Nurse Joy to take care of the recently abandoned Ekans before it died from its injuries. Normally, Nozomu would of went to Professor Oak's lab had the necessary regenerating potions to heal such injuries, but he was in Viridian, not Pallet Town, and he knew that the Pokemart only had simple Potions, which wouldn't do any good for the poor Pokemon.

Thankfully, a pair of Nurse Joys and their Chanseys took the Pokeball and hurried to the e.r. As he waited in the lobby, one of the Joys called for a police officer to explain why he brought in such a injured Pokemon, which was a tale Nozomu was more than willing to explain. By the time the officer needed to use the restroom, one of the Joys took him to a room they provided for him, and told him that the condition of the Ekans would be discovered tomorrow.

_'Now that the officer is gone, I can finally meet that Growlithe properly.'_ Nozomu picked up the Pokeball from the end-table and released it. The Growlithe looked around before it noticed him and happily wagged its tail.

_'Its you! The human that can see me without my ability in action! I'm so happy!'_ Nozomu couldn't stop the energetic Pokemon from jumping on him and licking his face.

_'Leave him alone!'_ Matoi appeared beside the Growlithe and pushed him off of him. Nozomu sat up and held Matoi. He knew full well how jealous Matoi could be when it came to meeting someone new, and didn't want for the two Pokemon to have a rough start with one another so soon.

"Now what is your name young Growlithe?" The Pokemon glared at Matoi before smiling at him. Nozomu could easily see the canine's fangs this way, and noticed that he couldn't see the bald spot from the front.

_'My name is Kagero Usui, but everyone from my old home called me Kagero or Kage for short.'_ Kagero looked at Matoi and growled. _'Who is the little weed?'_

_'Matoi,'_ Nozomu stated in a harsh tone, _'is my first Pokemon, and I can trust her much more than I can rely on you at the moment.'_

_'But why!'_ Kagero barked, earning him a glare from Nozomu.

_'From what the Pokedex states, you're at level twelve, while Matoi here is at level forty four. This alone means that, not only is she stronger than you, but that you need to catch up with her in terms of training. The only easy way to get you stronger is to evolve you, but I don't have a fire stone, and that is considered the cheap way of powering a Pokemon up.'_ Kagero sat on its behind with a curious look on his face.

_'But I need that stone to evolve at one point master.'_

_'That is true,'_ Nozomu nodded, _'But you don't need it to become stronger. Not only that, but the only place to obtain stones for cheap is in Celadon City, which would take about a week or two to reach.'_ The Growlithe yawned and laid on the soft carpet, leaving Nozomu to look at Matoi before taking off his glasses and turning the lights off. As he laid down, he smiled at Matoi, who nuzzled her head to his chest, and thought of something. _'Hey Matoi?'_

_'Yes Nozomu-kun?'_

_'Why do Pokemon all have Asian names?'_

_'I, well, uh, haven't thought of that. That IS kinda strange, isn't it?'_ Nozomu nodded, and proceeded to yawn before letting sleep claim him.

-Author's Notes-

Yes, this idea has been bothering me for SO long that I had to write it out. If, and when it is continued, it will not follow most of the regular storyline, or at all, and there will be Pokemon from different regions appearing, as you've already noticed with Matoi. For those who don't know Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, Nozomu Itoshiki is the main character, a sensei to a class with rather unique characteristics that would make a normal teacher snap. Nozomu himself is unique, since he easily falls into despair, and will try to kill himself at times. So far, we have three of the main cast in the Pokemon world, excluding Nozomu Itoshiki of course!

Matoi Tsunetsuki: Petilil

Kagero Usui: Growlithe

Jun Kudo: Team Rocket grunt

Some of the characters will appear as Pokemon, others as trainers, and maybe a few as random, unexpected things. Oh, as for my other stories, for those that might be wondering about them, they aren't abandoned, on hiatus, or forgotten. I've been catching up on each chapter fairly. Until next time everyone! Oh, and please review! I would like to hear from the viewers, instead of getting random favorites and story alerts!


	2. Chapter 2

Nozomu Itoshiki, one of the few successful apprentices of Professor Oak, a member of the Itoshiki family in Lavender Town, was currently glaring at the newest member of his team, Kagero the Growlithe, as he wiped his foot with a towel.

_'I said I was sorry! I didn't see a way out of here to use the bathroom!'_

"Do you know how long the scent of a canine's crap lingers? I'm going to be smelling this for hours on my foot, even after I take a second shower!" Nozomu turned his foot as far as he could, examining it to see if there were any brown splotches on it. _'Nope.'_ From the corner of his eye, he saw the Goldeen looking straight at him with lifeless eyes. Since its fins were still moving, he knew that the aquatic Pokemon was still alive, but something felt odd about it. Nevertheless, he smiled at Matoi, who was looking at the Goldeen with a peaceful smile on her face.

"Mr. Itoshiki?" Nozomu sat up and made sure that his light green kimono and black hakama weren't dirty. After he made sure, he opened the door and smiled when he saw a Nurse Joy holding a Pokeball.

"I take it the Ekans is going to live?" The Nurse Joy nodded, but instead of handing him the Pokeball, she placed it on her belt.

"It is alive, but due to it belonging to Team Rocket, it is scheduled to go under reconditioning." Nozomu frowned at the information, knowing full well what 'reconditioning' truly meant.

Contrary to popular belief, only a few of the Pokemon given to new trainers are from the wild. Most of the time, these Pokemon are members from a previous trainer's team, but were given up due to their owner dying, the person not having enough cash to care for them all, or the person not wanting them at all. Even some of the Pokemon were sold to labs and Pokecenters from ranches, though ranchers usually sold battle ready Pokemon as guards for the facilities.

A 'reconditioned' Pokemon are usually taken from criminals, such as members of Team Rocket, bandits, or biker gangs, and are taken to the nearest Pokecenter for basic healing. Once they're treated of their wounds, the Pokemon would get evaluated by a psychic, usually a human, but Psychic Pokemon have been used before. If the Pokemon can be saved as it is, then it will undergo personal training. Personal training simply meant that it would be under the care of a Nurse Joy, the head doctor of the Pokecenter, a Officer Jenny, or someone of high importance, until it was ready to be given to a new trainer. However, if the Pokemon is found to be too far gone, then either it will be reconditioned, or it will be killed. Reconditioning is a process where the psychic will enter the mind of the Pokemon and erase its memories in order to insure it would never remember its crime as a killer. Once the process is complete, the Pokemon would undergo simple training in order to see if the memory wipe did any damage, and would proceed to either killing it, or giving it to the Pokecenter.

Nozomu witnessed a reconditioning several times with the professor, and each time was more horrifying than the last. There is no such thing as a 'peaceful' reconditioning, and Professor Oak tried to get the reconditioning process banned from Kanto; however, the Elite Four ignored his request.

"I'm terribly sorry Mr. Itoshiki. If you wanted that Ekans, I could see if we have one in stock, or if we have another Poison type that you could have?" Nozomu shook his head and sighed.

"Its alright Nurse Joy. I wasn't going to keep him anyway. A Poison type wouldn't be good for my Petilil to be around, and I'm sure my Growlithe would try to bite its tail off many times." That got the Nurse Joy to laugh a little, which made him smile. Suddenly, a memory from yesterday flashed in his head, which reminded him what he was going to ask the officer from last night. "I was wondering if I could ask you a question." The Nurse Joy nodded. "What was that man yelling about a legendary in the Viridian Forest?"

"That," the Nurse Joy sighed, and looked away from him, not that it mattered since he wasn't looking into her eyes, "was from Marcus Pewtersmit, a resident from Pewter City. Like most from Pewter, he had many Ground and Rock type Pokemon at his side, but they did little good in the thick forest, and the mystery Pokemon used it to its advantage to try and kill him. Marcus, as you can see, survived the encounter, but lost his arm in the process thanks to the 'scythe' of the mystery Pokemon.

"Thanks to Marcus, most of the traveling trainers are running amok in the Viridian Forest, causing many people to get lost, and more to come back injured. Personally, I think its a Scyther that somehow got into the forest, or might of been in there this whole time and no one knew about it. Some of the other nurses, as well as the trainers, are saying more ridiculous things, such as a Pawniard, a Durant, even a Gligar and a Sneasel, though I can believe those two more than the others that have been said."

_'Perhaps its a swarm of Pokemon?'_ Nozomu thought to himself. A swarm was, in most cases, a horde of Pokemon from one part of the world traveling to another part of it. Usually, Kanto's swarms included Pokemon from one side of their region traveling to another part. About a few years ago, Pokemon from Johto, the region on the other side of Victory Road, began to appear in Kanto, ruining crops and causing panic throughout cities thanks to their unexpected arrival.

These swarm moments didn't last long, only a few days at most, but the foreign Pokemon that traveled through Kanto seemed to be at their most violent for no explainable reason. Recently, on the other hand, Pokemon from Hoenn and Sinnoh have traveled to Kanto, but most confusing is the very rare Unova Pokemon that appear with no reason. Unova was a region far away from Kanto and the other leagues, and there isn't an exact map to point out where it is. Most of the time, only trainers that were flying on their Pokemon, or pirates lost at sea, were the ones to find it, and very few of them ever returned to their homes.

"...As thanks for giving us the Ekans, as well as reporting a member of Team Rocket, we've been told to give you 4,000 credits." Nozomu shook his head, realizing that the Nurse Joy was talking to him for a while now, and he completely missed it.

"Uh, thank you Nurse Joy." He said quickly, hoping to cover up how much he ignored. She giggled and said her goodbyes before leaving, causing him to close the door and look at both of his Pokemon. Kagero was running after Matoi, who was happily evading the Growlithe with ease.

_'Haha, you can't get me!'_

_'Stay still you pesky weed!'_

_'At least I'm not some mutt in need of some potty training!'_

_'Why you!'_

Nozomu smirked at the little event and leaned against the wall to watch it unfold.

* * *

><p>Route 2, just like Route 1, was fairly short, except that there were a few pesky trainers that wanted to battle him. Normally, Nozomu would avoid battling, since Matoi wasn't exactly meant for battling, although she COULD, but it wasn't her that would be battling. No, that honor went to the newest member of the team: Kagero the Growlithe.<p>

Thanks to the Viridian Forest, the trainers that Kagero went up against were 'bug catchers,' a popular term for trainers that specifically caught Bug type Pokemon. From Caterpie to Beedrills, and a few Pidgey too, Kagero was forced to go against them, healed after he won his battles, and was allowed to relax once they got to the gate of Viridian Forest.

"I expected a Charmander, but not a Growlithe! Damn you!" The defeated Bug Catcher handed over 300 credits, a rather low amount to be won from a battle, and ran towards Viridian City. A loud 'thump' made Nozomu look down to see Kagero panting with his tongue out.

_'Aww, what's the matter pup. Can't handle the strain of battle?'_ Nozomu tilted his head to see Matoi standing behind his leg.

"When did you escape your Pokeball again?" Matoi shrugged. It wasn't the first time she did this, and definitely wouldn't be the last time. She started escaping her Pokeball when they first met, especially during the middle of the night, in order to cuddle, or spend more time with him. "You need to stop doing that. What if I need to call on you, yet you're hiding away somewhere?"

_'Then I'll simply use Magical Leaf on the enemy from my hiding spot, come out, and attack some more.'_ Her response made him frown and shake his head. Matoi was just too smart with a sharp tongue at times.

_'S-shut up you little weed! Why don't you try to battle two to three Pokemon with each trainer having them at different levels?'_

_'But you were invisible right? It just goes to show that you have horrible aim with your Ember attack.'_ Kagero growled at Matoi, a sound that Nozomu was slowly getting familiar with, and decided to recall Matoi. He sat on the ground and opened his suitcase, revealing many different items within it. He had a few Super Potions and regular Potions, but didn't dare waste the Hyper Potions so soon, and plenty of Pokeballs and Greatballs if he ever needed them. Inside one of the tiny compartments were Rare Candies, an item that instantly raised a Pokemon's level by one, but were harmful to the stomach of whatever Pokemon ate it.

_'Sometimes, I hate being the man I am.'_ Nozomu grabbed two Potions and closed the suitcase, locking it down before he called Kagero over to be healed. He knew that the scent the Potion released made Kagero nauseated, but there was little choice in the matter. Once Kagero was alright, he allowed him to stay out of his Pokeball and walked alongside him towards the south Viridian Forest gate.

_'Hey master.'_

"Yes Kagero?"

_'How can you see me when others can't?'_ Nozomu smiled at the question, considering Kagero was hard to see when he wasn't focusing on him.

"From the back, the bald spot on top of your head is easy to see, but when you're facing me, I need to concentrate on your bald spot if I want to keep an eye on you. I'm sure others have noticed you in the past." Kagero turned around and glared at him.

_'I am not bald! And I was only caught thanks to falling into the ocean on Cinnibar Island and needed to be rescued by a Kingler!'_ Nozomu chuckled and continued chatting with the canine. With a quick check to the Pokedex, he smiled at him reaching level fifteen, and knew that he would only get stronger while they were in the forest.

The south gate was a magnificent structure of concrete, technological advancements meant for security, and was bursting with life that Nozomu didn't expect to see. What he saw several guards trying to kill three blood stained Pidgeots. Only one of the guards had a shotgun with a scope, leaving the four other guards to command their Growlithes and Charmanders against the vicious Pokemon. The Pidgeots flew faster than anything Nozomu had seen, dodging the Embers and Flamethrowers the guard's Pokemon had to offer.

"Die you fucking bastard!" The guard with the shotgun fired, forcing a Pidgeot to the ground, which allowed a Growlithe to jump on it and sink its teeth into its skull. The remaining Pidgeots flew away, most likely due to knowing that they lacked numbers against the guards, allowing him and Kagero to run up to the guards.

"What happened here?" Nozomu looked at the guards, noticing that there were two more, though they were dead, that were lying on the ground besides the one with the shotgun. The five guards looked at him with mixed reactions, not that he could blame them. One of the guards, a chubby man with brown hair that went down to his shoulders, widened his eyes.

"I know you! You're Nozomu Itoshiki, the apprentice of Professor Oak! Would you happen to have some potions on you sir?" Nozomu opened his suitcase and handed out several Super Potions, inwardly cringing at the sight of his personal stock being used in such a wasteful manner. They weren't targeting specific areas, nor were they healing their Pokemon with it first.

"Will any of you answer my question. Why did those Pidgeot attack the gate?" The guard with the shotgun coughed before looking up at him.

"We don't know. All we know is that one of them died as it forced itself through the gate, then the other three came in and attacked us. Those things are true monsters!" The guards said similar things to one another as Nozomu noticed that Kagero was talking to the other fire types. Kagero seemed happy to be able to talk to his own kind, despite them not seeing where he actually was. The Charmanders simply ignored the Growlithes, preferring to lick at their own wounds and rub their tails together for warmth.

"Do you think the attack has anything to do with what that man was shouting out a few days ago?" One of the guards spoke out, causing Nozomu to focus on them.

"Che, its thanks to him that we are going though the forest to make sure the newbie trainers don't die in there. Legendary Pokemon with scythes for hands, ha! Scythers reside in the Safari Zone! At most, its a Beedrill whose drill blurred in front of the guy's face!"

"Either way," The chubby guard sighed and looked at Nozomu, "thanks for giving us the help. I'm taking a shot in the dark, but I'm going to guess that you're going to Pewter?" Nozomu answered with a simple nod. "I'd suggest going through the side route that leads up to Diglett Cave. Mind you, you don't have to go through the cave, since it will take you to Vermillion City, but right behind the cave is a secret entrance you can use to get to Pewter. Trust me, its better to deal with a few random Digletts and Pidgey than the bugs and the mystery Pokemon that's in the forest." Nozomu felt a sudden sense of dread fun through his veins, and looked around to make sure no wild Pokemon were watching them.

"GET IT AWAY FROM MMMEEEEEEE!" A series of loud, startling noises came from the room that made up the gate, causing the guards and the fire types to move away from the doors. As soon as Nozomu stood beside Kagero, the doors opened, revealing a young school girl with a few Beedrill chasing after her. The sound of various Pokemon screeching suddenly came through the gate, making Nozomu look past the edge to see that the doors on the other side of the building were torn down. The hinges were bent out of place with the walls surrounding them having long gashes that no known resident of the Viridian Forest could make.

"Shit! Calling Viridian City headquarters! We have an 0-9 situation that's heading towards the city! We'll try to take down the pursuing Beedrill now!" Nozomu, not wanting to end up heading back to the city, recalled Kagero and hurried into the Viridian Forest.

* * *

><p>The Viridian Forest was everything that Nozomu ever heard it would be. The trees formed thick walls that made it nearly impossible to slip through, the grass and leaves on the trees were rich in color, and there were many Weedle and Caterpie walking along the ground. He noticed the Metapod and Kakuna Pokemon were on separate trees, never more than two feet close to each other for the unlucky few that were in the same tree, and it confused him as to why the breeds were staying away from one another.<p>

As he released Kagero, he noticed that there were slash marks on the trees, as well as a few holes that reminded him of Digletts, and didn't want to think of what he would have Kagero to deal with. What if the mystery Pokemon was a Scyther? Kagero could use Ember and its speed against it, but the Scyther, in order to make so many marks, must of been at least level thirty. At times, levels didn't matter when it came to type advantage, but Nozomu wasn't a gambling type, and he didn't want to put Kagero on the line for his first serious gamble.

_'The scent of rotting flesh and blood is strong here master.'_ Kagero mumbled as he went down the left. Nozomu followed the canine, keeping his hand on Matoi's ball just in case he needed for her to attack from the side. The scent that only a Caterpie could create was strong in this part of the forest. If he remembered correctly, Professor Oak said that the red antennae that a Caterpie had on its forehead were used to create the Repel cans that were sold in Pokemarts.

Now, Nozomu didn't care much for the products that were made with parts of Pokemon, but he hated thinking, reading, or hearing about it being talked about. The last time he thought about Pokemon products, he was eating Slowpoke Tail with Giovanni and Professor Oak a few years ago when the other two men began talking about various items. Just the thought of knowing what was done with Pokemon, with the exception of eating them, takes him through the diety known as despair.

_'Hhhhiiiiii...'_ Nozomu looked down to see a Weedle inching towards him. Kagero chuckled, most likely due to the Weedle's greeting, and walked over to it. Seeing the two Pokemon talk to one another was interesting, especially if he blocked their words and replaced them with "Weeeddllleee" and "Growl, owl, GrowlITHE," and other stressed and unstressed parts of their breed names. He saw a few Rattata eating some bug Pokemon corpses, and inwardly noted how there was a Raticate looking at him. Was it a mother, or just the guard to watch after the young rats?

_'Can we eat the live one mom?'_

_'No, don't you see the Growlithe over there? It will burn you to a crisp and eat you up as if **YOU** were the Weedle!'_

_'Oh no!'_ The young Rattata huddled against one another, making Nozomu laugh at the scene.

_'Master, there is something you gotta know about this forest.'_ Nozomu nodded at Kagero, mentioning for him to continue. _'Apparently, there is this fast, black Pokemon that has been attacking anything it can.'_ A BLACK Pokemon? Scythers weren't black, they were green, and he didn't know of any human sized legendary, or smaller, that had sharp claws to use. _'Weedle here says we should go the other way and hurry out of here. The only thing down here is a Pokeball that was dropped by a victim.'_ Knowing that he had plenty of items to catch Pokemon with, he thanked the Weedle and began walkinig to the other side of the path.

The loud scream of the Butterfree made Nozomu twitch as he watched Kagero burn it alive. He told the canine that he wanted that particular Pokemon alive, but couldn't do anything about it now. Butterfree were one of the easiest psychic Pokemon to obtain, yet they were priced rather highly thanks to their psychic subtype. One of their saving graces were that they were easier to care for, and listened easier than a Drowzee would, and were cheaper than a Hypno or a Mr. Mime.

_'I can't really tell if its still daytime outside.'_ Nozomu frowned at the realization of how thick the trees were. Whatever nutrients the surrounding trees were absorbing, it needed to be salted immediately. That, or he would buy the damn Fire Stone and evolve Kagero, come back to the forest, and burn it to the ground.

The Viridian Forest's trees were driving him insane!

As he and Kagero went down the suggested path, the two were confronted by a Bug Catcher who had six Metapods at his disposal. Normally, wild Metapod used Harden and possibly String Shot, but nothing else. This Bug Catcher's team were raised from their Caterpie state, giving them the knowledge of how to use Tackle. That forced Kagero to repetitively use Ember at the charging cocoons, dodge the few he couldn't hit, and stay still long enough to ready another Ember.

The only good thing, excluding the additional two hundred to three hundred credits he got from each opponent, that happened due to the various Bug Catchers Kagero fought beforehand was that, thanks to the stress the Metapods gave the Growlithe, it forced him to use the move Flame Wheel. In simple terms, Kagero covered himself in flames and rolled at the last few Metapods, earning Nozomu the win. The only downside to using the attack was that it tired the canine too quickly for his tastes, which was something only training could prevent.

As he allowed the Growlithe to rest and eat a few Oran berries, he brought out Matoi and had her fight some of the Kakuna and Metapod that were resting in the trees. Since they couldn't move as freely as they could on the ground, the cocoon Pokemon were practically unmoving targets for Matoi to work on her Magical Leaf attack. A few minutes later, Beedrill and Butterfree started to attack them, most likely due to Matoi attacking the cocoon Pokemon, and forced Kagero and Matoi to work together in order to take down the flying bug Pokemon.

Which led to how Nozomu finished putting up the tent he was going to sleep in as he watched Kagero burn the last of the Butterfree.

_'Yay! Did you see that master? I killed the last one!.'_ Kagero ran around the burning corpses, barking loud enough to make him wince.

"Yea, yea. You did great Kagero. Now get over here so I can start making dinner for you and Matoi." Nozomu looked around and walked over to a pile of thick, broken branches. Once he was sure there was nothing around him, he picked them up and placed them a few steps away from the tent. "Hey Kagero?"

_'Yes master?'_ The young canine replied.

"How would you feel about me catching a bug Pokemon?" Nozomu had to bite his lip so he wouldn't smile at the glare the Growlithe had.

_'I despise them already! Matoi is enough of a pest anyway, and I won't get a challenge from them at all!'_ As the canine continued to complain about bugs and Matoi, Nozomu found some dried leaves and placed them around the twigs, using his left hand to surround the outer twigs with dirt. Once he lit the fire, he brought out a small, portable grill and placed two steaks on it, one for himself, and the other for Kagero. It wasn't as if he didn't trust the Growlithe's fire producing abilities, but the last time he asked for a fire type to start a fire, it incinerated the twigs in a few seconds, and nearly burnt his eyebrows.

The assistant that was a few inches closer to the fire, on the other hand, lost both of his.

_'Poor Alfred never stood a chance against the Ponyta's Flamethrower.'_ Nozomu noticed that Matoi was walking out from the bush across from him and was shocked at the various wounds she had on her. The worst of them was a gash on her chest with little cuts on her shoulders. "Matoi!"

_'No-Nozomu-kun...'_ Matoi stumbled as she walked over to him. Nozomu, being human, picked up his suitcase and went over to her. He brought out the bandages and Super Potions before noting where he'd have to spray. _'I managed to g-get it away from us.'_ Matoi closed her eyes, her chest moving slower than usual, which made him work faster.

_'M-master?'_ Nozomu heard Kagero mutter something, but couldn't hear what he said.

**Crack!**

_'Huh?'_ Nozomu looked above, and saw a large limb to a tree falling towards him. He kicked his suitcase away and jumped to the side to avoid the fallen limb. Nozomu only had time to notice that the part of the limb that was the thickest had a clean cut when he heard another limb fall. This time, instead of aiming for him, it landed on the tent, destroying it with ease. "Kagero, to my side, NOW!" The canine barked and jumped over the limb, revealing that the Growlithe wasn't injured, and glared at the trees above them.

_'What will we do now master?'_

"We're going back to Viridian City in order to get some repellent, heal Matoi, and get some necessary equipment. I want you to use Ember on any Pokemon we come across, got it?" Kagero barked in reply and ran as fast as he could.

Nozomu wasn't going to be the mouse in the game of predator verse prey.

-Author Notes-

I didn't know how to end this chapter up, so it wasn't my best work. Also, no reviews, which is kinda shocking, but considering the crossover, its understandable. Still, some type of response to this would be nice.

Until next time.


	3. Chapter 3

So yea, no reviews yet. Am I shocked, not really, considering the cross, but worried? Of course, though I might be over reacting like a schoolboy. As usual, I don't own Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, Pokemon, or anything specific that somehow enters this story.

-Chapter 3-

Nozomu Itoshiki found himself wandering around Viridian City with Kagero walking beside him. Its been two days since he escaped the Viridian Forest and handed Matoi over to the Pokemon Center to be healed. It wasn't long before he was told that she needed to rest for a few days, hence his extended stay in Viridian City, wandering around with a bored expression on his face. He already stocked up on additional supplies, with the addition of a new tent, and bought ten more Pokeballs in case he was able to find a Butterfree in the Viridian Forest.

"Excuse me." Nozomu turned and saw the schoolgirl who ran out of the Viridian Forest gate looking at him. She wore a new school uniform that, he noticed, still had the price sticker right above her right breast, a longer skirt, and black dress shoes. The girl herself had short, black hair with the exception of her bangs, which reached her shoulders, and bandages wrapped around her forehead. She had an eye patch over her left eye, and her left arm was in a blue cast.

All in all, he was surprised that the girl was talking to him, rather than staying at home getting use to her situation.

"Do you need something?" He asked, glancing at Kagero, who was chasing after a few Pidgey near a slightly burnt tree. _'I wonder when he used Ember on it?'_

"I was wondering if you could help me catch a new Pokemon. You see, I have a Poliwag as my starter, but it won't exactly listen to me, and I saw how well you were ordering your Pokemon and how they listened to you, so I was wondering..."

"You want me to tutor you?" He asked, interrupting her at the same time. She nodded at his question, causing him to shrug his shoulders. He was looking for something to take up time as he waited for Matoi anyway, so why not? "Sure, I'll help you out. So where did you start out from?"

"From Cinnibar," She pulled out her Pokedex and handed it to him, "I used to live in Hoenn when I was little, but my family decided to move to a more friendly region for us to live in. I was surprised to see that my starter was a Poliwag instead of a Growlithe or a Koffing, Vulpix, or a Rattata like everyone else." Nozomu nodded as he looked over her Pokedex information. Her name was Kobushi Abiru, eighteen years old, obviously female, and, oddly enough, has heterochromia, which could explain the eye patch, or it could of been due to an injury she got from the Viridian Forest. How would he know?

"Its unheard of, but not uncommon for a starting trainer to get a different Pokemon. You should be happy that you got a Pokemon that will evolve into something that has a better chance of protecting you than a Koffing, Vulpix, or a Rattata." He handed her back the Pokedex, glancing at Kagero, only to find him sitting next to him, and looked at Kobushi. For some reason, she was frowning at him.

"Actually, I'm not going to like my Poliwag so much when it evolves. So will we take Route 22 to train, Route 2, or Route 1 sensei?" Deciding to ask her about her Poliwag later, he decided that it would be best for them to practice at Route 1. That way, he could see how her Poliwag reacted to her, in battle, and to strangers.

* * *

><p>Kobushi was, as a trainer, a bit odd in his eyes. She kept on focusing on the Rattata, Sentret, and even the rare Furret that passed them by, even going as far as to try pulling the tails of each one! Luckily for her, and for Nozomu, since he didn't feel like carrying the girl to the Pokemon Center if she got injured, they were too fast for her to grab hold of their tails. Even Kagero looked at her with a look of caution, as he stopped his tail from moving.<p>

"Alright, this should be far enough." Nozomu said, sitting on a boulder that wedged itself in the ground. "Bring out your Poliwag." She nodded and called out the aquatic Pokemon. Like all of its species, it was rather short with a long, finned tail behind it. On its blue skin was a white circle with a black swirl pattern on its stomach, directly under its puffy red lips. Its wide eyes looked at him before it turned to see Kobushi with a stern glare.

_"You will not be grabbing my tail fin again!"_ The Pokemon shouted as it spat out a few bubbles at her. Kobushi let them pop against her right arm, bending down to rub its back, only for the Poliwag to jump away from her hand.

"Did you happen to do anything to its back?" He asked, trying to figure out her fascination with tails, if what he saw with the wild Pokemon around them, and the Poliwag was to determine.

"Well sensei," Kobushi paused, looking away from him, "I've grown up with an admiration for the tails of Pokemon. Each region have their own unique Pokemon, and nearly all of them have a special tail that belongs only to them. I just find myself so absorbed into the details of them, their fur patterns, the feel of each and everyone that I can't help but to give them a little TUG." Nozomu definently didn't like the way she said tug, and he could tell that neither of the Pokemon who were out liked how she said it either.

The fact that Kagero and the Poliwag, two Pokemon of opposing elements, were _hugging_ each other in fear, spoke thousands.

"If that is the case, then what is your dream Kobushi? As a Pokemon trainer, you'll have the opportunity to catch many different Pokemon, but you'll be using them all the time to fight against others, evolving them, which might cause them to loose their tails in the process."

"Well, I thought of becoming a breeder." Kobushi looked up at the sky. "Then I thought about all the money it would take for me to keep it running, especially if I kept most of the eggs and Pokemon for myself, rather than selling them to others." Nozomu could only nod at her explanation, mentally telling himself that, if he ever found her place of business when he was older, to turn around and **never** enter it.

After a few more questions, he helped her learn some of the basic tricks to walking onto an unsuspecting Pokemon, such as how to make as little noise as possible, how to know when the Pokemon isn't faking a knock out, and how to spot if there are more than one of the Pokemon around it. Kobushi caught on after an hour of practice, letting him watch her try to use the tips learned on the wild Pokemon in the area. The Rattata in the area were hard to launch a surprise attack against, due to them naturally being keen listeners, and quick on their little feet. Instead of using her Poliwag to try and catch them, he allowed her to use Kagero, telling her to only use Bite and Tackle, since Ember would take a few seconds to prepare, seconds that she needed if she wanted to catch any of the Rattata or other Pokemon in the area.

An hour later, he had to recall Kagero to let him relax from all of the hunting he had to do. If he was lucky, then the Growlithe would of grown a level of two from this experience, though it was unlikely. When it was the Poliwag's turn to be used by Kobushi, it was cautious around her, not that it didn't have a reason to, but followed her orders none the less. Thanks to it willingly working with her, they managed to catch a Rattata with the use of Hypnosis, damaging it a bit with a Water Gun, before Kobushi threw her own Pokeball at the sleeping mouse. He had to admit, he was proud of her being able to catch a Pokemon with her own, rather than using his, and earned some of its trust. He was sure that, with a few Pokeblocks, some berries, and a month of no tail pulling, only petting, that she would be able to have a hard working Poliwag.

At least, until it evolves into a Poliwhirl, but that wasn't his problem to deal with.

"Hey Poliwag, do you wanna practice your Water Gun a bit?" Nozomu smiled as he watched the Poliwag agree with her. She pointed to the boulder that he was sitting on a few hours ago and ordered it to use Water Gun. When it used the attack, everything had gone as it should. A strong, sudden stream of water came out of the tadpole's mouth, and struck the large boulder for about thirty seconds before it stopped. He thought he heard something groan, but shook off the noise as the trees shaking with the wind. Professor Oak told him, when he was younger, that some of the trees were around two hundred years old, and were never cut down due to how the Pokemon in the area protected them. When he heard the groan again, he tried to find a moving tree, only to see none of them move, nor was there any wind in the area.

"Uh Kobushi, can you stop using Water Gun for a minute?" 'Too late.' He thought as he watched Kobushi's Poliwag use Water Gun on the bolder once more. As the attack struck the bolder, he watched as the boulder slowly stood up, popping its hands from itself and turned towards them.

"A G-Graveler!" Kobushi shouted as the Poliwag spat another Water Gun at the rock/ground type. Nozomu released Kagero, knowing that he wouldn't be of much help at the moment, in case she Kobushi needed a distraction.

_'Show me what you can do when you have the advantage in types.'_ He thought, watching as the Graveler stomped the ground, making the area around them shake. The ground didn't crack from the attack, as most Magnitudes did, thanks to the mud that now surrounded the wild Pokemon.

"Quick, while its distracted, HYPNOSIS!" As six yellow, circular beams came out of the Poliwag's eyes, the Graveler rolled up into its boulder form and sped off towards the Poliwag.

_'And here comes the Rollout.'_ He told himself as he watched Kobushi and her Poliwag jump out of the way of the Rollout. Instead of attacking the rolling boulder of death, the duo ran away, leading the wild Pokemon on a goose chase around the field. If he was the one being chased, he would of used a Water Gun to soak up the ground around it, or past it, run around the Graveler, and make it roll into the muddy puddle. That way, it would deal some damage, and possibly slow it down. However, he was not the one who was running between despair and joy, it was Kobushi who was stuck running on that line, and all he could do was watch what happened.

"Water Gun on the Graveler's body!" The Poliwag spat out another stream of water, though it did nothing to efficiently slow down the Graveler. Sighing to himself, he looked at Kagero, who ran behind the Graveler and spat some fireballs at it.

_"Hey you piece of rolling Miltank poo! Come and get me!"_

_**"I AM NOT A PIECE OF POO!"**_ The Graveler shouted as it turned towards Kagero. As it rolled towards the Growlithe, it got out of its ball form, falling face first into the ground. _"Oh not again!"_ It shouted.

"While its stuck, Bubblebeam Poliwag!" Kobushi's Poliwag, instead of listening to her, ran towards the Graveler. "What are you doi-ng?"

_'Well this is certainly something.'_ Nozomu scanned the Poliwag with his Pokedex as it jumped into the air, curling itself into a ball, and coated itself in ice. As it landed on the ground, the ice ball rolled, though slower than the Graveler's Rollout, towards the rock Pokemon. The Graveler moved out of the way of the first strike, only to recieve a sphere of fire to its face, causing it to stand still as the Poliwag rolled into it.

_"Gah!"_ The moving ice ball rolled away, getting behind the stunned Graveler, and slammed into its back. This forced the Pokemon to fall on its face yet again, allowing the Poliwag to roll over its body completely.

**"Technique scanned. Technique is Ice Ball, an Ice attack that coats the user in ice, forcing them to roll into a ball, and attack the opponent. Though the attack normally lasts five turns, there are instances where the attack ends prematurely."** Nozomu's Pokedex stated, causing him to nod as the Poliwag stopped moving. The ice from its body broke into small fragments, letting it stand up and release a Water Gun right at the Graveler's fallen form. At this, the Graveler groaned, yet didn't move from its spot, causing him to look at Kobushi.

"I'm sure its safe for you to catch the Graveler Kobushi." The school girl looked at him in surprise, most likely at his sudden comment, but nodded none the less.

"Come on, catch!" She shouted as she threw a Pokeball at the Graveler. The Pokeball absorbed the unconscious Pokemon into it, falling to the ground as it shook three times, though the shakes were rougher than they should of.

**PING**

That single, usually unimportant sound made Nozomu sigh in relief as Kobushi and her Poliwag just stared with a dumbfound expression at the Pokeball on the ground. The ball didn't shake, brake, or sink into the ground, though he had to wonder what exactly would happen if he was the one to grab that Pokeball at the moment. Shaking the thought from his head, Nozomu recalled Kagero to his Pokeball and walked past Kobushi. Right as he walked three steps behind her, he stopped.

"Ya know, this is the time when you grab your Pokeball and keep it." Nozomu continued forward, smiling as he heard the girl scream in joy at her new Pokemon. _'Maybe being a teacher wouldn't be so bad.' _With that, Nozomu decided to head back to the Viridian City to check on Matoi, or to train Kagero a bit after he was healed.

-Author Notes-

Yea, merry late Christmas one and all. I was a bit busy over the weekend, and out of town, hence not ablt to post this. So, I hope everyone had a great holiday, and I'm just happy to get this chapter out before the year ended. The next chapter will involve the Viridian Forest once more, and with a little help this time around, Nozomu might just make it through the forest with little to no injuries.

Until next time!


	4. Chapter 4

Hello one and all! Sorry about the, well, late update. I've been quite held up with my other stories, both fanfiction and original, and I finished this chapter not too long ago. I truly don't have much to say, other than I do hope you enjoy this chapter!

-Chapter 4-

Matoi healed and ready to go: check!

Kagero up and ready to go: check!

His supplies all in his suit case: check!

Making sure that his student, Kobushi Abiru, had her three Pokemon, as well as her supplies, up to standard: check!

_'Now there is nothing preventing us from getting through the Viridian Forest!'_

At least, that was his thought three hours ago, when he and Abiru first entered the maze of a forest with only one of their Pokemon out. He picked Kagero, and she picked her Rattata, who had warmed up to her quicker than most wild Pokemon normally did, and began their way into the forest. Unlike the first time he went through the forest, he didn't see any type of Bug Pokemon, a bad sign if he ever saw one, though he was amused by Abiru with the way she spotted an Oddish.

By the time the first hour came, they ran into various trees that had gashes in them. These gashes reminded him of the rumored legendary Pokemon that was now hiding in the woods, but he was sure that it wasn't a legendary Pokemon, especially since none of them would be in the Viridian Forest. After the trees, they saw the corpses of various Bug types, most of them being Butterfrees, and went further into the forest, moving a bit more cautiously. As the second hour struck, Nozomu finally found a Butterfree, a shiny one at that, though it was quite injured. If he didn't use one of his Super Potions, as well as a Paralysis Heal, the Butterfree would of never made it. Once he was done healing the Butterfree, he caught it without a second thought.

_'...What? Would **you** allow a shiny Pokemon to get away from you after you did everything to heal it?'_ Nozomu thought to himself.

A half hour after he caught the shiny Butterfree, long, thick tree branches began to fall upon them, forcing them to run deeper into the forest, even running off the trail in order to avoid their unknown attacker. The remainder of the half hour was used to find their way back onto the trail and find a good clearing to camp for the night. The sun was dropping rather quickly for a change, and he wanted to make sure that they had a tent up away from the trees, unlike last time. Abiru's Graveler was quite helpful for the protection of the campsite, as it was able to uproot trees that were too close to them with its Rollout attack, though Nozomu _did_ feel bad about how many Bug type Pokemon homes he most likely ruined.

"Have you seen this mystery Pokemon sensei?" Abiru asked, making Nozomu shake out of his thoughts and focus on her. They had set up camp moments ago, got a good fire going, and were waiting on the chicken he bought from the store in Viridian City to cook. He shook his head, pointing up at the trees that were twenty feet away from them.

"Something attacked me and Matoi when we were coming through. Considering clean cuts the tree limbs that were falling towards us had, I'd assume its the same Pokemon attacking us." He focused on his Pokemon, watching as Matoi and Kagero were playfully chasing after one another, though they were followed by Abiru's Rattata. Her Graveler and Poliwag were sitting next to her, except each Pokemon were on the opposite side of her, due to the difference between their element typing. That, and he was sure that the Graveler was still angered that the basic level Pokemon managed to knock it out without too much of a hassle.

"Do you think we'll see it, or even be able to catch it?" He didn't answer, deciding to shrug as he flipped the chicken. At the moment, he had a strong urge to speak of why he believed that they wouldn't be able to see the unknown Pokemon, let alone catch it, and continue his opinion with a detailed rant. He didn't want to hurt the girl's brain, nor did he wish to loose a potential student, hence his silent answer. "I think you should catch it, since I'm sure it doesn't have a tail."

"But," Nozomu couldn't help but to sweat a little at the blunt statement, "your Poliwag will evolve into a tailless being, and your Graveler has no sort of tail on it either."

"I know, but that is why I kept my Rattata. It will have a tail as a Raticate! And then he'll be my cute little buddy as we all travel to get more tailed Pokemon!"

_'Such optimism, yet the obvious favoritism she feels for certain Pokemon puts me in despair!'_ Nozomu thought to himself, holding back the urge to scream. Its her life, not his, and she can do anything that she wants to.' From there, the two trainers were quiet, simply watching the chicken cook upon the open flame. He couldn't help but to find himself smiling at the discussion Kagero had with Matoi, who sought to ridicule the Fire type Pokemon for all he was worth, which wasn't much in her eyes. He still remembered as he grew up under Professor Oak's care all of the Pokemon that spoke of things they liked and didn't like. Some of their conversations were pointless, such as the Magikarp who believed that he was meant to be out of water, or the Ditto that, literally, believed it was a singer,

There were other Pokemon, on the other hand, that were rather devious and, when he was at such a young age, found himself having a hard time to sleep thanks to their personal stories. A Tangela, for example, that the Professor was holding onto for an old friend, spoke of how she took pleasure in ringing the life out of wild baby Pokemon when she was allowed to run around. A Beedrill described the effects of its poisons, and how it killed various Pokemon until it was captured; however, its story held nothing in comparison to the Muk that Oak once had.

Nozomu was crying tears of joy when he found out that the creepy, disgusting Pokemon was sent off to a special ranch for Poison types.

"Sensei, the chicken!" Nozomu shook his head and focused on the chicken, which somehow caught on fire, and yelled out various things. He placed the burnt remains of the chicken on the large plate and sighed at the charred poultry.

_'Can this get any worse?'_

* * *

><p>Sadly for Nozomu Itoshiki, it did get worse, in the form of screaming Pokemon.<p>

You see, after he burnt their dinner, he made a few burgers with his full focus on the food. As soon as the patties were cooked, he found himself knocked down by a young Bulbasaur that had a look of terror on its face. Even though he wasn't hurt by the sudden tackle, one of the hamburger patties were, and, thanks to his deceiving heart, gave the only good one to Abiru. He focused on healing the Bulbasaur as she ate, hoping that it would help ease his stomach's hunger, only for it to growl loudly time and time again.

Ten minutes later, the Bulbasaur was healed, at the sacrifice of a Potion and some bandages, and expected for the little Pokemon to leave. Instead, it stayed by Matoi, playing with her like a young Pokemon was expected to, and allowed for it to stay with them for the night. Once Abiru was done eating, he asked her to watch the camp as he went into the forest to get some berries for him to eat. He took Kagero for his protection, since he was sure that no sane Pokemon would attack Abiru with so many different types of Pokemon beside her, especially one as large as her Graveler.

Much to his dismay, most of the most commonly marked berries producing bushes and trees were either crushed, torn down, or already plucked for every berry it had, causing him and his Growlithe to go further and further from the campsite. Then, after five minutes of walking, he found a Persim berry bush and hurried over to it. He knew it was wrong, but the plump, juicy looking berries that were known for their sweetness took over his rational thinking, causing him to trip over something, a branch, he figured, and fall. Well, more like rolled down a small hill and landed on his butt in front of a variety of Pokemon. These Pokemon instantly looked at him with a look of shock, fear, but the most noticiable was anger. Well, all except for one Pokemon, which was tied up with vines to several bundles of wood.

It was a Pokemon he didn't see before, that much he knew. It was nearly three feet with a thin, black body, had two yellow jewels imbedded in its skin, one between its eyes and another in the middle of its chest, and had a short, red extension on its left ear. Its violet eyes widened at the sight of him, almost as if it had a pleading look in its eyes, but he couldn't tell. The last thing he noticed, which might of been the most useless fact about the Pokemon, was that it had two toes with a sharp talon coming from them.

Then, the screaming came, leading him to the moment he cursed karma.

_"An intruder!"_ A Pikachu shouted, causing the Weedles and Beedrills to release needles at him. Nozomu ducked, narrowly avoiding the poisonous needles, and rolled away from the Beedrill that decided to stab him with its stinger arms. Luckily for him, he didn't come alone, and smiled when Kagero leaped out of the bush with an Ember launched at the Beedrill, forcing it to flee from the group. At the sight of the Fire type, the group of Pokemon stopped their attack, focusing on Kagero as Nozomu stood up, brushing the dirt from his clothes.

"What is the meaning of attacking my master!" The Pikachu jumped forward, glaring at the Growlithe before nudging its head towards the tied Pokemon.

_"We finally caught the one who has been destroying our home, and we seek justice!"_ The surrounding Pokemon cheered at the Pikachu's words, making Nozomu widen his eyes at the revelation. _"It has squashed eggs, killed infant Pokemon before they could even move, and has eaten most of the berries in our forest, making many of us starve!" _Again, angry comments of agreement came from the surrounding Pokemon, reminding him more and more of the horrid Pokemon he heard as a child.

_"It was not me!"_ The Pokemon, which was female from the sound of its voice, shouted.

_"Lair! Traitor! Deceiver! Lies!"_ Were the various things the Pokemon were saying to the Pokemon. The Pikachu turned around, swaying its tail towards it.

_"And how can we believe you, when your claws are long enough to kill anyone of us?"_ The unknown Pokemon looked away, casting another glance at Nozomu for a split second before looking away. In truth, considering all of the Pokemon on the ground were basic level Pokemon, it wouldn't take much to kill them, except for the Pikachu, which was known for their above average mastery of electric attacks, as well as their agility. Then, as soon as he thought of the traits of the Pokemon, an idea struck him.

"You, what would you gain from killing the Pokemon!" Nozomu pointed at the unknown Pokemon, making it, as well as the enraged Pokemon, look at him. The cheeks on the Pikachi sparked, making Kagero growl at the rodent.

_"Your human speaks as if he can understand us, Growlithe."_ The Pikachu stated. This comment simply made the Growlithe nod.

_"Its because he can, and has been before I met him. I'm more than sure that he has been listening to us all talk from the moment we got here."_ Nozomu ignored the murmurs of the Pokemon who heard Kagero, focusing on the Pokemon in front of him. It still looked away, but made eye contact with him, and through the one eye that looked at him, he would be able to tell if the Pokemon was honest, or deceitful.

_"I would gain nothing from it."_ The Pokemon's tone was low, as if it was grieving. _"I enjoy causing a bit of mischief, but what Pokemon doesn't? And yes, I DID cut down some of the tree limbs from the trees, but none from the trees that had any Pokemon on them."_ The creature faced him, looking at him with their eyes meeting in a staring contest. The tone in its voice was even, its eyes didn't shift, nor did they water, and it didn't help that its facial structure made it seem as if the Pokemon was constantly glaring at him.

"I'm sorry..." The Pokemon surrounding him became quiet, adding an uncomfortable feeling to what he was already feeling about the current situation he was in. With a sigh, he looked down at the Pikachu with a small smile on his face. "But you-" With no warning, a large branch landed in front of him, making him loose his footing and fall onto his back. Right as he was about to get up, he saw the part where the limb was cut, and noticed that it was a CLEAN cut.

_"No...NO! It can't be!"_ The Pikachu shouted, making it release a small Thundershock on the limb. The Pikachu most likely came to the same conclusion that Nozomu had, though the small rodent wasn't looking up at the trees like he was as he got up. The leaves from the trees were rustling chaotically, as if something was forcing them to move, which didn't help calm the worried Pokemon around him. Using the distraction to the fullest, Nozomu ran to the injured Pokemon and picked it up.

_'I really wish I had my knife about now!'_ Nozomu slightly winced at the bundle of wood rubbing against his clothes, and hurried back the way he came. He was only a few feet away from the bush when an oddly shaped shadow overtook his form.

_"You will not take the sacrifice!"_ The rodent grabbed onto the back of his head, slapping his head with its tail.

"Ow! GET OFF!" Nozomu grabbed the creature by the nape of its neck, yanked it off as quick as he could before it could do further harm, and threw it. Well, he was about to, when the Pikachu's Static ability kicked in, making him drop it on the ground. The Pikachu glared at him as its cheeks glowed bright red, signaling that it was about to use an electric attack, which was something he didn't want to feel. Luckily for him, Kagero used Ember on the electric rodent, forcing it to jump away as it took the full force of the attack.

_"Go master!"_ Kagero called out. Nozomu nodded and ran up the hill as fast as he could, praising the fact that there were no nearby trees near the small hill for the mystery Pokemon to force upon him. At least he could see the Growlithe trying to run up the hill as well, except it had that pesky Pikachu trying to take it down. Kagero wasn't as fast as Pikachu, which is a problem, but the Pikachu seemed to be suffering from a burn around its tail, which might take off a few seconds from it completing an attack. All it took was one good physical hit and the Growlithe could come into contact with the Static ability, a sight he didn't want to see.

_'Gotta get to Abiru!'_ Nozomu tripped, only having enough time to turn so he would land on his back, and clutched the bound Pokemon tightly.

_"Just let me go already!"_

"Not until you get healed!" He replied. He sat up, widening his eyes at what he was looking at. 'Is that the unknown Pokemon?' It had a pair of scythes for hands, reminding him of the Scyther breed, and was a shiny lime green like the insect Pokemon as well, but its body was much taller than it. That wasn't the only difference though, as the next thing he noticed was its thinner body, twig like arms, and its head was oddly shaped. It was U shaped, which was unusual for Pokemon breeds, though he wished that he could see the front of its head, rather than the back of it. 'Maybe it won't notice me with it being so high up in the tree?' A hiss came from the unknown Pokemon as it slowly raised its two scythes, and looked towards him. He had no Pokemon that would listen to him at the moment, Kagero was still doing battle with the Pikachu, and the injured Pokemon in his arms needed to be healed asap!

Why did all of the bad things in the world have to happen to him?


	5. Chapter 5

The Pokemon was unlike anything he had ever seen, Nozomu thought to himself as he stared at the deadly looking Pokemon. Its scythes were placed in front of its body, preparing itself to kill from the looks of it, but what Nozomu wondered was if he was the target, or any Pokemon in general. No one wanted to die, may it be Pokemon or human, but both would agree that, if necessary, they would leave or push one in the way of death in order to save themselves. Nozomu, on the other hand, wasn't like that, which was why he was so confused of what he should do.

"Please, whoever you are, stop harming the Pokemon and destroying the forest! You're hurting them and the humans that need to travel through to make it to the next town!" The Pokemon looked at him, lowering its scythes in the process, but the dead stare in its small eyes didn't promise Nozomu much.

_"I hunger for a home to call my own. This land..."_ The Pokemon looked around, slashing at the tree it stood on with its scythes. _"Is nothing like where I once was. The land is too lush, and there isn't a pond to rest in. My home... It is gone isn't it?"_ Nozomu didn't know what to say to the Pokemon at first, since he knew nothing of its origin. He decided to ask a simple question. One that might hopefully tell him more about the creature in front of him.

"What was the last thing you remember?"

_"A flash of light coming from the sky. Many flaming boulders were crashing onto the land, sending clouds of death that..."_ The Pokemon stopped talking, and jumped away from a well placed bolt of lightning that caught the tree aflame. In front of Nozomu was the Pikachu from earlier, though its right shoulder had a large bite wound, most likely from Kagero, and used its left arm for support.

_"Heretic! An abomination to this forest! Perish with what you've destroyed!"_ The Pikachu jumped, sending a trio of Thunderbolts at the Pokemon, but followed with a Double Team. The copies dashed around the trees, circling the unknown Pokemon with a smirk upon its face as another Thunderbolt slammed into the ground near Nozomu. He took a few steps back, watching as Kagero slowly walked towards him with a rather large burn on the lower side of his belly.

_"Sorry master... His Thunder Wave struck me good."_ Instead of saying anything, he recalled the Growlithe, offering a silent thank you for holding up the deranged Pikachu as much as he could. He couldn't use the Butterfree since it wasn't trained with him in mind, and the bound Pokemon he rescued is in need of medical attention. So, as much as it worried him, his fate was less or more in the hands of the unknown Pokemon.

_'That, or you could catch the Pikachu. Well, attempt it at least.'_ He thought to himself. He always carried a few Pokeballs on him, though only a hand full since his pockets couldn't hold much, and figured that the Pikachu wouldn't be able to hold up against a Pokeball, especially if it rejects the capture. If it rejects it, then it'll be even more weakened for the unknown Pokemon to attack it. Then again, if the Pokeball did catch the creature, where would he take it to? There was no way he would give it to the Professor, since he didn't need a psychotic rodent running around, and he was more than sure that Abiru wouldn't want it, even if it did have a long tail.

_"Why won't you simply perish!"_ The Pikachu screamed, its tail glowing a bright white before swinging it towards the unknown creature. All the electric type managed to do was force the Pokemon to jump away, and swung one of its scythes at the rodent. He, as well as the Pikachu, didn't expect for a dark pulse of energy to come from the scythe, and slam into the rodent's chest, making it scream as it landed on the ground. Something about that attack drew blood, possibly due to the amount of energy forced into it, but it was more than enough for him to throw the Pokeball at the Pikachu, sighing moments later when it was caught.

_"It is no more?"_ The unknown Pokemon spoke to him. Nozomu walked over to the Pokeball and picked it up, nodding as he placed it on his belt. He had wasted an Ultra Ball upon the psychotic Pikachu, a fact that only made him frown since those particular Pokeball models were expensive.

"Yea. I plan to heal it with some medicine, as I will with the injured Pokemon beside me, before heading to the next town to find it a companion." The bound Pokemon, he just realized, had passed out during the small battle he had witnessed, a miracle since it had multiple injuries. If he didn't get her some Potions and a bundle of medical tape soon, she would perish, he knew that much. So, with that in mind, he bent down and picked her up when he noticed the scythe of the Pokemon was poking at the Pokeball on his belt.

_"May...may you help me find a companion as well?"_ Nozomu could only pull out a spare Pokeball and pointed it at the unknown Pokemon.

"I'll find you a home." Nozomu smiled at the Pokemon before pressing the Pokeball to its scythe. It turned into a red beam, making the Pokeball shake several times before it stopped moving. With a nod, he placed the ball on his belt and hurried back to camp with the intent of contacting Professor Oak as soon as he got to Pewter City.

* * *

><p>By the time he managed to get back to the campsite, Matoi was the only person, well, Pokemon that was awake to greet him. Abiru and her Pokemon, including the wild Bulbasaur, were sleeping next to one another, and it was a cute sight to see, though he would never admit it to anyone. With Matoi's Aromatherapy, she was able to help him remove the paralysis from Kagero, though he hated the look Kagero wore as he sprayed his injuries with the Potion. The bound Pokemon, which turned out to be a Sneasel, took the longest to heal, even with the use of a Super Potion, and various berries for it to get its strength up.<p>

The worst of the three Pokemon were the Pikachu, not because it was horridly injured, but because it constantly tried to escape. Nozomu had to recall the rodent for fifteen minutes, spraying a small about of the Potion on its stomach before watching it run away, making the wound even worse. It took the aid of the wild Bulbasaur and its Vine Whip for him to heal the rodent as best as he could before recalling it. He was tempted to look at the Pokedex history of the unknown Pokemon, but he wanted to hear the results from the Professor, rather than find out outdated information from the electronic device. With nothing else to do, he laid on his side of the tent and slept with Kagero and Matoi beside him.

When he woke up, he found himself being in the middle of a rather unusual argument between Kagero, Matoi, and the Bulbasaur, though he paid no attention about the topic of their argument. He proceeded to feed the group whatever Pokechow he had, including the Sneasel, and fed the unknown Pokemon when Abiru went to wash her clothes in a nearby pond in the forest. The only member of his team he introduced it to was Kagero, since he was a part of the situation as well, and the Pokemon was a bit more friendly than he honestly expected. By the time Abiru came back from her swim, Nozomu had packed up their stuff and was ready to go with Matoi as his guard for the day.

The trip out of the Viridian Forest seemed to go by faster than before, most likely due to the lack of the mystery Pokemon threat, and saw some more Pokemon squirming about on their way out. When they got close to the gate that would show them Pewter City, they saw a group of men wearing lab coats and, much to his worry, a member of Team Rocket walking into the forest. When they walked up to the group, Nozomu was glad that the Rocket among them wasn't the same guy who attacked him several days ago, but still kept his guard up in case this member recognized him.

"Is there something the matter in Pewter City?" Nozomu asked the group. One of the scientists stepped away from the group and raised his hand.

"Miachel Keel, head scientist from the Pewter Museum, and no, nothing is wrong in Pewter. Its the forest we are worried about." Nozomu shook the offered hand and offered a polite smile to him.

"Oh," Abiru started off, "is it because of the mystery Pokemon that is causing so much trouble for people to come through here?"

"Exactly." Another scientist spoke up. He had curly brown hair with a rather pointy nose, a trait Nozomu didn't see in many people. "We know what it is, and we're a bit ashamed that it was us that brought it out."

"What!" Abiru exclaimed, causing Nozomu to look at the Team Rocket member in the back of the group. He hadn't said a word, but he kept his gaze focused on the two scientists that were talking.

"Shut it Steve. Ugh, now we HAVE to tell them." Miachel turned to Nozomu and smiled. "Actually, this might help us after all. Has any strange activity happened over your travels to Pewter City?" Nozomu nodded before explaining what happened through the first day of their travels. He left out the scene where he found the Sneasel being tortured by various Pokemon of the forest, and said that he found the Sneasel fighting Beedrill and wanted to take it to the Pokemon Center before deciding if he should keep it or not.

"Oh! We'll let you go right away then! But before you go, I'll tell you a quick summary of-"

"No time! We need to let them through!" The Team Rocket member finally spoke, shocking Nozomu as he grabbed the two by their wrist and pulled them towards the gate. "You guys hurry to Pewter. She doesn't look as if she has much time left at this rate." With a silent thank you said, Nozomu and Abiru ran through the gate, leaving him to wonder why that particular grunt was nicer to them. It was fifteen minutes later that he found himself looking upon Pewter City, and found himself glancing at the large mountain that laid east from it. It didn't take them long to find the Pokemon Center, though Nozomu would admit that there were plenty of people within the center that held them up from getting a Nurse Joy or a Chansey to look at the Sneasel.

By the time that a Nurse Joy did come around to see them, half of the trainers that held them up were leaving the center, though many of the others were sitting down to wait for the results of their Pokemon. From what the Nurse Joy told them, if it wasn't for him taking the Sneasel out of her bindings and bandaging her wounds, she would of bled out to death, or severed her own claws in the process of escaping her bindings. After they took the Sneasel away for a more proper check up, he went over to the computer transporters and contacted Professor Oak.

"Oh my! It looks like you made it out of the Viridian Forest with no injuries. That's great! You know what I always say, None of us have the skin of a Machamp, so let us cherish our skin, unlike that of an Arbok. Haha, that is another one for my book!" Nozomu could only let out a soft chuckle as he watched the Professor write his new quote onto a scrap piece of paper. This happened on a regular basis while he worked with the Professor, mostly due to him being able to communicate with Pokemon and would tell him their jokes.

"Actually professor, I need to send you a Pokemon that I can't recognize and hope you could tell me something about him."

"A Pokemon you don't know about? Didn't you just listen to what it was saying?"

"Professor," Nozomu sighed, "You know that in exchange of me being able to hear them, I can't hear them use their breed name for its language. I'm sending it now." With a click of a button, the Pokeball of the unknown Pokemon was sent to the Professor. It was kinda funny to see Professor Oak's face change from calm to shocked, followed by joy and excitement in the span of seven seconds, but he couldn't help but to frown. What was the breed for Kami's sake?

"You did it. Oh boy, you did it this time!" Was the Professor mad at him? "Oh, I'm so happy but mad at you at the same time!"

"What? Why!"

"On the one hand Nozomu, you are the second trainer to bring me a shiny Pokemon, the first being a man called Lance when he thought his Dratini was sick. Shiny Pokemon are extremely rare, and the price for one is quadrupole whatever the regular price of the Pokemon is, since all Pokemon have different prices depending on their rarity, region, or popularity." Nozomu shrugged and pulled out another Pokeball from his belt.

"Well, I also caught a shiny Butterfree, but I didn't want to use it since I haven't had a chance to train it. Do you want it to study it Professor?" One loud yes later, Nozomu sent the Pokeball over to the professor and watched him release the Butterfree. It happily flew around the lab, most likely enjoying the change of scenery, but he noticed that the Professor was looking at the screen again.

"What I'm mad about is that you caught the research project of the scientists of Pewter City's museum." An image flashed on the screen, showing a brown version of the unknown Pokemon. "They resurrected the only complete Kabutops fossil in the world since there was an unusual irregularity in its DNA that they wanted to test out. Though it wasn't released to the public news stations, the Kabutops went crazy and killed one of the scientists before escaping from the museum. A few days later, as you might be able to piece together, a strange Pokemon was seen in the forest injuring traveling trainers, as well as destroying many trees and berry bushes in the Viridian Forest, but no one could find since it could camouflage itself due to its color. And-"

"And that Kabutops is the same Pokemon that ran from the scientists." Nozomu whispered, earning a nod from the Professor. "When Abiru and I, she's a trainer who wanted to travel with me, before you even ask, went up to the Pewter City gate, there were several scientists with a Team Rocket grunt among them entering the forest. So they might be coming to Pallet Town to check the area Professor."

"I'll make sure to keep a good eye on your Kabutops then Nozomu. Still, this is a marvelous discovery for the purpose of mankind! Just think, just by watching what the Kabutops eats, the manner it moves, and attacks, we'll learn more about prehistoric Pokemon, especially how they breed. Oh, I'll need to get him to breed so I can get a Kabuto egg! Thank you Nozomu, thank you very much!" The screen suddenly turned black, signaling the Professor had cut off the connection, something that didn't bother him much. With that done, Nozomu stood up and walked out of the Pokemon Center with a task in mind.

* * *

><p>"Ugh, that stupid twerp and his Pikachu is getting harder and harder to catch!" A woman with ridiculously long red hair spoke. Her blue haired companion nodded before taking a bite of his apple.<p>

"I know, but we'll surely get them next time Jessie."

"I know James, but." The red head now known as Jessie shrugged, glaring at the ground as if it did something wrong. "I don't even think the Boss will want a Pikachu if we wait too long. I don't even know why he wants one now! There are probably hundreds of them in the Viridian Forest for him to catch."

"But Jessie, that is why he wants one so badly." James stated. "Pikachus are so hard to acquire, especially during the fall, and he really wants one to empower before making it into a Raichu. At least, that is what Meowth explained to me before he was knocked out by that Pikachu's Thunderbolt." This was the conversation Nozomu found himself listening to from the park bench he was sitting on. The two Team Rocket members, which was easy to point out due to the giant R on their shirts, were sitting on the ground with a picnic basket next to them. It was odd to see them acting normal, since the first member he met acted like a killer, and Team Despair were a bunch of lunatics that believed in causing the world to believe in a crazed plot of their creation.

"Hey." Jessie and James turned to Nozomu, who picked the Pikachu's Pokeball off his belt. "If you're in need of a Pikachu, I have one you can have in exchange for a Pokemon you have."

"REALLY?" The two Team Rocket members asked him. Nozomu nodded, happy that he could find the psychotic Pikachu a trainer for it to mess it. Who knows? It might actually LIKE the duo, or their Boss, whoever they give it to.

"Well, the thing is..." Jessie began.

"We don't have any other Pokemon other than my Koffing and her Ekans." James finished for his partner. Nozomu sighed and looked at their belts, and confirmed that they each only had one Pokemon. "Wait, what about Ikkyu-san?" Jessie nodded at the name, clapping her hands together.

"Yea! Ikkyu-san would do anything for us!" With that said, the two Rockets packed their things up before running into town, forcing Nozomu to follow the duo. He was really just tempted to give it to them for free, since he was sore from all of walking he did. After following the duo, he found himself standing in front of a gray house that had a large window to the right side of the house. He could see them talking to a bald headed man who smiled at them before handing them each a Pokeball. When they walked out of the building, Ikkyu-san walked over to him and handed him a Pokeball as well, showing him a bright smile.

"Please enjoy this as a token to call our one day friendship." Before Nozomu could even comment on the weirdness he had heard, the man closed the door and his blinds, confusing him even more. He turned to the Rocket duo, who were chuckling, or in Jessie's case giggling, at their new Pokemon. James obtained a Magnemite while Jessie obtained a Cubone that, in truth, didn't seem to like her very much. Nozomu pulled out his Pokedex and scanned the Pokeball and found himself shocked to see that he obtained a Charmander, and a young one at that.

"You got a Charmander!" Jessie shouted, recalling the Cubone she had and placed it in his hands. She took the Charmander's Pokeball and pressed it to her chest. "I've always wanted a Charizard since I was a little girl, and this is my first chance to live my dream. You're okay with this, right?" In the end, Nozomu accepted the trade, and simply gave James the Pikachu before heading back to the Pokemon Center. It was nice that the Rocket duo wished to meet him again someday, since they were rather nice people, and couldn't wait to tell Abiru what had happened with him. Suddenly, the Cubone's Pokeball shook, making him drop it as the Cubone released itself from its Pokeball. It looked up at him, causing him to wince and take a deep breath.

'This isn't going to be good.' He thought before smiling. "Hello little one. My name is Nozomu Itoshiki, and I'm your new owner. What's your name?" Instead of talking to him, as he expected, it grabbed its small bone club and began to carve into the ground. Right as he was about to ask the little mon for its name, he noticed that it wrote a M, followed by a E, R, and a U. "Me..ru. Meru, that is your name, right?" The Cubone gave him a slow nod. "Good, I hope we can become-" Before he could finish, he noticed she, he figured it was a girl due to its name, was carving into the ground at an alarming rate. By the time she was finished, he couldn't help but to let his jaw drop at what was carved on the ground.

"Go die you crossdressing miko reject." Was what her message said. The Cubone didn't look the slightest bit guilty or sad at what it wrote. If anything, it seemed indifferent to him, even as it wrote things like "Die," "Jump off a ditch," and "Watch yourself tonight."

"Zetsuboshita! I'm being threatened by a Cubone that I got from a trade!"

-Author Note-

Long time no see readers of this story! I'm glad to get this chapter done, since I've been meaning to get the Pewter City/Mt. Moon situation taken cared for, and was hoping to introduce more of the Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei world into the story. Overall, I like how the chapter was done, a little bit of action, some character involvement, both old and new, and some facts that weren't known were brought up. As for the Rocket member that was with the group of scientists, that will be brought back again in a chapter or three, depending on how long it takes chapter wise for Nozomu to get into Mt. Moon.

With that said, please review the story. Until next time!

-Sayonara Zetsubou Characters-

Meru Otonashi: Cubone

Ikkyu-san: One day friend, retired trainer, Pokemon giver.


	6. Chapter 6

"I'm sorry sir, but you can't pass."

"Why? I need to get to Cerulean City!"

"I know sir, but you can't pass through."

"Why not? I see a trainer just STANDING next to that ledge over there!"

"Sir, the difference is that she has a badge from this city, and you don't. If you want to become a Pokemon Master-"

"I don't want to be a trainer! I'm Professor Oak's aid and I need to get to Lavender Town!"

"Can you show me some proof?"

"Yes, HERE!" Nozomu nearly threw his Pokedex at the confounded man, hoping that he'd die due to blunt head trauma, but he simply handed it to him, and watched as he flipped the protective screen. A few hms and ahas later, he handed him back the Pokedex.

"Yes, everything seems to be as they should be, but what about her?" The man pointed to Abiru, who was petting her Rattata that she held in her arms. Nozomu shrugged and pointed to himself.

"She's my current student, learning how to care for Pokemon and such other nicensetties to being a Pokemon trainer, researcher, or whatever Poke-thing she desires to be. Why?"

"Then you can't pass until she has a badge from the city."

"What is wrong with you!" Nozomu shouted, attracting the attention from many people around them. This had been going on for more than ten minutes, and he was sick and tired of it! For whatever reason, this random man in front of him won't let him pass to Mt. Moon, though other trainers, as well as tourists and civilians, have been passing him all day, because he didn't have the Boulderbadge. He was more than sure that this was illegal to do, and he was really hoping that a Officer Jenny would pass by and see this, but he decided to simply try and walk by him instead.

"Look sir. Ever since we've had mysterious injuries and deaths occur upon this route, its been required for all passing trainers to obtain the Boulderbadge. That way, they all have some chance of defeating whatever is attacking the people, got it?"

"You mean to tell me..." Nozomu clenched his fists together, hoping it would ease the annoyance he was feeling due to the man. "That instead of the gym leader, the workers at the museum, or the Officer Jennies that are stationed in this town going through the route to do a clean sweep of the area, you want people to go to your town's gym, making them waste time to get a pointless badge, and allow them to go through, with the possibility that they might become stronger due to the experience of fighting a gym leader?" The man nodded.

"Yep, that's right!"

_'I...I don't know if I want to shout zetsuboushita to the heavens, or punch this man in the face.'_ Nozomu felt a tug on his sleeve and turned to see Abiru looking at him with a worried expression on her face.

"Don't worry about it sensei. I'll get the badge for the two of us." For a split second, what she said sounded like a proposal of love for him, but he knew better, and forced the thought away. A small clap made him turn to the man who grabbed their arms and yanked his away.

"What are you doing!"

"I-I was gonna lead you to the gym."

"We can clearly see where the gym is. We're not eighty you lousy excuse of a-"

"SENSEI!" Nozomu couldn't help but to chuckle at the tone in Abiru's voice and walked away with her, wondering how the gym leader of Pewter City could hire such an annoying person to represent them. Ten minutes later, he found himself standing in front of the Pewter City gym with Abiru glancing at him from the corner of her eyes. He wondered if she was worried about the gym leader and their Pokemon, but he was sure that she had enough types within her collection to go up against anything the gym leader had in their collection.

"Did you keep the Bulbasaur Abiru?"

"No sensei." She replied. "It was cute, I'll give it that, but it doesn't have a tail that I could play, I mean, PET!"

"Be that as it may," Nozomu shook his head, ignoring the part Abiru tried to cover up, "I want you to think clearly about the Pokemon you have with you at the moment. Your Rattata won't be as helpful in this battle since the gym relies on Ground and Rock types. So your Graveler and Poliwag will be your most useful here."

"Sensei, why would Graveler be useful if the gym leader here also uses Ground and Rock types?"

"That is because your Graveler will be at a stronger level and has more combat experience than the rest of your team. So, are you ready?" Abiru nodded, causing Nozomu to open the door to allow her into the gym. In truth, the cold, lifeless feeling the gym had reminded him of a morgue. Maybe the silence added to his opinion, or how the barren gym floor only had boulders to show that it was more than a simple room, but something seemed odd about this place.

"HEY BRO! SOMEONE WANTS TO CHALLENGE YOU!" A loud, squeaky voice called out, making Nozomu jump at the sudden noise. A teenage boy walked out from one of the rooms a few minutes later, wearing an orange shirt, dark brown pants, and had tan skin. His eyes were rather small, or squinted, he couldn't tell, and he had spiky brown hair that reminded him of a comic character.

"So you two are the ones who have decided to challenge me so early in the morning huh?" Nozomu gave the teen a cold stare.

"Its eleven in the morning."

"Is it?" The teen shrugged. "Anyway, I'm Brock, the gym leader of the Pewter City gym. So which of you two would like to challenge me first?" Abiru raised her hand.

"Actually sir, I'm the only one challenging you today. I'm here so we can get past the guard blocking the route to Mt. Moon." Nozomu could of sworn that he saw Brock smile at what he was told, but signed it off as him being happy at being challenged by a girl. It seemed as if most trainers were boys, and the few girls that DID train Pokemon for battling picked rather weak, or staple Pokemon that everyone wanted.

"Alright, then this will be a two on two Pokemon battle. Only you, the challenger, will be able to swap out a Pokemon or use items while I can not. Is this suitable?"

"I accept the terms of this battle."

"Then let us begin. Go Geodude!" The small Pokemon looked like a much smaller version of Graveler, except it only had one pair of arms, and didn't have feet.

"Come out Graveler!" The moment Abiru's Pokemon came out, it seemed to snicker at the Geodude in front of it, most likely mocking the fact that it was going against its next stage of evolution. It was then that Nozomu noticed that no one was going to referee the match, and walked towards the podium one would stand at.

"I am Itoshiki Nozomu, the head aid to Professor Oak, so I am more than qualified to be the referee for this match. The match is between gym leader Brock of Pewter City and challenger Kobushi Abiru from Cinnibar Island. Let us begin!"

"Defense Curl Geodude!"

"Rollout Graveler!" The Graveler curled himself into a ball of destructive force, spinning itself in place before rolling towards the Geodude. From his position, Nozomu could easily see the Geodude pressing his arms in front of its face, crossing its arms like an X before Abiru's Graveler collided into it. Despite the increase in defense, the Rollout had too much power for the basic stage Pokemon to handle the force of the attack, sending it flying into the air. As soon as the Geodude was close to the ground, the Graveler was already there, letting the Rollout send the Geodude back into the air.

"Try to move away from the Rollout Geodude!" Sadly, being a gym leader meant that they had to know everything about their Pokemon, in this case Rock and Ground types, and it didn't take long for Nozomu to realize that, due to the weight of the Geodude, that it would be impossible for it to change its couse. Luckily for the basic stage Pokemon, Abiru's Graveler only struck once more with its attack, stopping as the Geodude was sent into one of the large boulders on the arena. When the dust settled, the Geodude had its eyes closed, its arms limp, and its mouth moving at a slow rate. With those three signs, Nozomu raised the flag to Abiru's side of the arena.

"The winner of the first match is Abiru due to knockout. Now its time for the gym leader to call out his next, and final, Pokemon." Brock glanced at Nozomu with a slighgtly depressed expression on his face.

"You don't have to point out the obvious..." Brock shook his head and grinned at Abiru. "Anyway, you might of been able to take out my Geodude, but what can you do when it comes to my best Pokemon, Onix!" The large, rock snake Pokemon appeared in a flash, causing the Graveler to take a step back from the Pokemon.

"I'm swapping!" Abiru called out, mentally earning a check mark in Nozomu's mind for the smart move. "Show me what you can do, Poliwag!" As soon as Poliwag was materialized, Nozomu started the match, and watched the Onix slam its tail on the ground, causing the arena to shake.

_'An Earthquake already?'_ Nozomu thought to himself as Abiru's Poliwag jumped into the air and shot a Water Gun at the Onix. Brock ordered his Pokemon to dig underground, but by the time it began, it took the full force of the water attack. Still, despite it taking the full force of the Water Gun, the Onix managed to dig underground, forcing Abiru's Poliwag to cautiously walk on the ground. Moments later, the ground began to horribly shake, causing the water Pokemon to fall onto its back.

"Ice Ball to get away from that spot Poliwag!" Abiru shouted, narrowly saving the small Pokemon from taking a massive amount of damage with that single order. With the Poliwag being in its Ice Ball state, it took the advantage it had and slammed itself into the Onix's chest, causing it to groan and shake it away from itself. Before the Poliwag could roll towards the large Pokemon, it threw a small boulder at its direction, causing it to dodge the sudden threat.

"Continue with Rock Throw Onix!" Brock ordered in a booming voice, making the Onix roar in approval and chuck another boulder at the small Pokemon. It became a game of cat and mouse, and the Poliwag was slowly loosing its speed advantage against the rock snake, making him wonder how his student was going to counteract this situation. He didn't havt to wait long, as the last chunk of ice covering the Poliwag crumbled, revealing the Pokemon in all of its glory.

"Turn around and use Water Gun!" The Poliwag did as it was ordered, shooting a powerful Water Gun at the Onix's upper body, causing it to drop the boulder it held, at the same time. The Poliwag jumped onto the discarded boulder, forcing its Water Gun to cover more of the rock snake's body, only for it to slap the amphibian with its mighty tail. "Poliwag!" Abiru shouted at the sight, only for the little Pokemon to spin into a ball, entering into another Ice Ball attack, and slammed itself onto the Onix. It roared in pain, as to be expected from the super effective attack, but what Nozomu didn't expect was for the rock Pokemon to fall to the floor, twitching during four second intervals. After a few moments to see if the Onix would get up, as well as allowed Brock to try and get his Pokemon up with some moral boosting commands; however, nothing changed, allowing Nozomu to wave the flag in Abiru's favor.

"Onix is unable to battle, meaning that Abiru from Cinnibar Island is the winner of this match!" From there, not much had happened for Nozomu to be interested in. Brock handed Abiru the Boulderbadge that she won, talked to her for a bit, and allowed the two of them to leave. As percaution, he told Abiru to take her team to the Pokemon center to be healed while he went off to check out the Museum to kill some time.

In hindsight, that was the worst idea he ever had.

While he was in the museum, a place that had several fossilized ancient Pokemon that sparked his interests, Meru, the insulting Cubone he recently acquired yesterday, escaped from its Pokeball and ran away from him. Her skull helmet made it hard to find her inside the museum, causing him to ask one of the security guards to help him find her, only for them to hear a rather large SNAP above them. The fossilized Dragonite that hung above the main floor nearly fell on top of them; although, instead of feeling the entire thing fall on top of them, they were able to witness the destruction of the ancient fossil, causing the security guard, as well as a majority of the scientists that work there, to pass out in shock.

It was complete irony that Jessie and James were at the museum, as they attracted the attention of the security guards and thought it was them who caused the fossil to crash. So, without much else to do, Nozomu left the place, hoping to see any sign of Meru outside of the place. When he didn't see any sign of her, he groaned and slapped his forehead, only to feel a tug on his pant sleeve.

_'Well, that was fun.'_ Was the message he saw carved on the ground, though it was followed by a _'Here.'_ Suddenly, he caught a large rock that was thrown at him, and noticed that it was an Old Amber, which was mentioned in some of the articles he read at the museum. Apparently, Old Ambers sometimes held precious DNA samples of insects, plants, and Pokemon that could be used to bring the Pokemon back to life. So, seeing that he suddenly had one, he looked down at Meru, who was already walking away with a new bone club that looked as if it belonged to the Dragonite fossil, and couldn't decide if he wanted to rip her head off, or scream to the heavens. Instead, he simply sighed and took the Cubone back to the Pokemon center, hoping to get out of town before he was taken in for robbery and was stripped down to his boxers for pictures that weren't meant to be taken. It would get even worse if he was pinned for the destruction of the Dragonite fossil, as they would most likely give him charges that he didn't even do and force him to the worst prison in existence. All of the thoughts and worries in his mind came together, causing him to shake and stomp his foot on the ground.

"Zetsuboushita! I'm-" Before he could finish, he suddenly found himself on the ground with a burst of pain pulsing from the right side of his head. He noticed Meru carving something as he got back to his feet, and watched her finish the rest of her message.

_'Shut up and keep moving. We don't have all chapter.'_

"Chapter? What are you talking about?" Seeing that he wasn't going to get anything else from her, he ignored her final comment and walked with the abusive Pokemon.

-Author's Notes-

Long time no see everyone. My desktop is now out of commision until I get it cleaned, so I'm now using my father's laptop until I can find a power supply for one I recently acquired. All in all, not much happened in this chapter, other than a bit of plot pointing, getting a gym badge, and Meru causing our main character a bit of chaos. I gotta admit, that pesky guard blocking the path to Mt. Moon annoyed the hell out of me when I first started playing Pokemon Blue as a kid, as I couldn't figure out how the hell I was to get past until I realized that I had to beat the gym leader.

What can I say? I was six for crying out loud!

Still, I did have some fun writing this out, and I hope to get the rest of my stories updated. Until next time, and please review!


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